CALGARY — Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas is calling on the Alberta government to work with the city as firefighters face a sharp increase in overdose calls, renewing a debate over who should pay when municipal fire crews respond to medical emergencies.Calgary firefighters responded to 5,941 overdose calls between January 1 and July 31, according to figures released by the Calgary Firefighters Association. That represents a 143% increase from the 2,440 calls recorded during the same period in 2025.In July alone, firefighters responded to more than 35 overdose calls per day, with crews frequently administering naloxone while responding to suspected drug poisonings.Farkas weighed in Monday, arguing Calgary firefighters are increasingly being called on to fill gaps in a health-care system that falls under provincial responsibility..“We need to talk about what the provincial government is doing to Calgary’s firefighters,” Farkas said.He stressed that his criticism was not directed at paramedics or EMS workers, saying they are working within a provincial system facing significant pressure.“But the province has made choices about where health care resources go,” Farkas said. “Increasingly, the focus has shifted toward rural Alberta while Calgary is left relying on firefighters to fill the gaps.”Farkas did not provide comparative provincial health-spending figures in the statement to substantiate his claim that resources have increasingly shifted toward rural Alberta.The mayor argued Calgary property taxpayers are bearing costs associated with firefighters responding to medical emergencies that would otherwise fall within the provincial health system.“Health care is a provincial responsibility,” he said, adding that more of that responsibility is, in his view, falling on Calgary taxpayers and firefighters..As a Ward 11 councillor in 2019, he called for Calgary Fire to be compensated for responding to medical calls. At the time, Calgary Fire was responding to nearly 30,000 medical calls annually without compensation from Alberta Health Services.“They go above and beyond and actually go toward helping the provincial government reduce their cost,” Farkas said.Seven years later, he is renewing that call as overdose responses put additional pressure on fire crews.The City of Calgary says CFD supports Alberta Health Services Emergency Medical Services by co-responding to life-threatening medical emergencies, including drug poisonings.The Calgary Firefighters Association has also raised concerns about the effect of the rising call volume on its members..City data released earlier this year also showed the increase was already emerging in the spring. In April, CFD recorded a sharp year-over-year increase in overdose responses. The city said the rise could be related to changes in the street drug supply or its composition.Farkas said he wants the city and province to return to discussions over how medical responses by Calgary firefighters are funded.“We need a fair conversation with the Province about fixing this together,” he said.He also called for discussions with both the provincial and federal governments about policies related to the increase in overdoses.“Our firefighters will keep showing up for Calgarians,” Farkas said. “Calgarians will keep doing our part. It’s time for our provincial government to do its part, too.”
